14th Salary"? Some stupid Questions.

I can only answer number 6. Yes you have been here too long. Yes you are a cynic. There is no hope. No I can not help you.

1. IF they have no children they can buy more rum - however if you are looking for fairness - why do some of my tax dollars go to pay for education - I have no kids in the school system!

2. That will buy a whole lot of books. But most of the employees only earn 6,000 to 10,000 per month and that will buy uniforms, books etc for 2 to 3 kids I guess.....

3. Concept is if the gov't employees get it then it will extend to the private companies.

4. With 17% unemployment nation wide - you bet they will.

5. See above points. Most gov't workers earn very little. The max any gov't employee will get is 30,000. For those at the top end this will mean nothing.

6. Yes honey, there is help for you. Go to the bar on the corner and get a cold Presidente -likely won't help but it can't hurt either.

For many years I operated a software consulting company with headquarters in Italy and the United States. The Italian law also mandated two "additional" paychecks. One in August and one near Christmas. Just make sure you adjust your annual compensation for people to account for this...or it will sting!

Always

US property owners always pay a large percentage of property taxes for schools, for fire and police and other services. Even with no kids, no robberies or your house doesn't burn down you still pay.
Here it is not RD$30K across the board, by the way, it is weighted on income levels. This is not a DR thing but rather a common thing, isn't it? ??oooooo que taca?o.

From my experience so far... let me share some averaged numbers.

• A first-grader will need up to about 5000 to 6000 Pesos of books and stuff plus uniforms which can run up to 2000 Pesos if you buy things double so you can wash a set and use another.
• Then, there are sign up fees every year, depending again of the school.
• A "private" school can run up another 6000 to 24000 Pesos a year... some are even more expensive... way more expensive (but let's concentrate on what some who work may have access to).
• Then, there is transportation and snacks in some cases.

When I signed up "my" two girls (locals I am helping), I found that just one week before classes started, half of the past years class had NOT signed up yet. At school day #1, 30% of pre-existing students did NOT show up, citing in most cases that they were scrambling for the sign up money and and first month as well as books and stuff.

For the average income producing family (I am not even talking about the vast majority who's poor), I must admit, I don't know how they do it at all.
Dominicans are not a Nation of savers, and if they'd safe it usually only is to buy something they really don't need as badly as education for themselves or their children.

So, a mid year 14th salary could be helpful IF ONLY we could find a mechanism to make sure that money will be dedicated to school utilities and tuitions and not yet an other fiesta or fancy cell phone. Maybe employers could buy school-goods-stamps which could only be redeemed as payment in papelerias for books and stuff needed for school and at schools for sign-up fees. But that would most likely be too much to ask, now would it.


... J-D.

To gringosabroso's defense, he did mentioned that those were 'some stupid questions'. :cheeky:

1. What if the employee have no children? No minor children? No children attending school?

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They get no money.

2. US $860 [30,000 Pesos] is a lot of money in the DR; how many books can it buy? How many books will it buy?

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It sure is a lot of money, but the 14th check will not be 30,000 pesos. That figure is the highest salary a person should have to qualify for the 14th check. For most of the beneficiaries such check will not be 30,000 pesos or anything near that.

3. With most DRs on the verge of survival, perhaps starvation, why give very fortunate Gov't employees more $? Is the law of supply & demand in effect in this country? How?

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What? 30,000 pesos is a relatively rare income among government employees, so I doubt most of the beneficiares of this new benefit are among the 'fortunate' well heeled types.

4. Would 90% of DRs grab any Gov't job offered to her or him? In @ 5'?

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Have you checked what's the unemployment rate? Despite an ongoing debate among Dominican Economists regarding whether the Dominican unemployment rate is being calculated correctly (all evidence points to a gross miscalculation which is giving an inflated figure, but this is another topic), the unemployment level is relatively high.

5. With the entire world, including all of the Caribbean in a major recession, perhaps depression, is Nov. 2008 the best time for Pres. Fernandez to create yet another boondoggle for Gov't workers? Resulting in no benefits whatsoever for taxpayers? Myself included?

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Recession? Depression? Where?

You said the entire world and no, the entire world is not in a recession and not a single country (except the failed states littering Africa and a few in Asia) is in a depression. Only a few countries are in a recession, and the only country in the Caribbean (except for Haiti which has never been out of a recession if you ask me) that is in a recession is Puerto Rico.

BTW, president Fernandez had little to do with this new proposal.

6. Have I been here too long? 12 years. Have I become a complete cynic? Is there any hope. Can anyone help me?

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Maybe you have been there too long and it sure does seem as if you have become a cynic.

About hope, well at least you recognize you have a problem. That's the first step to a solution.

As for who can help you.... um, do you want for me to refer you to my brother. He's a psychologist.

-NALs :cheeky:

yes JD,
totally agreement on that.
Gringo,
to be a single or childless member of any society does not mean that you have to pay less than married/heavily child loaded members of that same society, the opposite, calculated per head/pax/person the single one pays more than the married 'producing' one.
i spent my long time in europe as a good money producing working guy and paid the highest tax rates(germany, tax class 1 for singles without kiddies aso), no deductables because i never made debits/ask a bank for a loan or such stu..
sure on the same jobs collegues who worked the same like myself paid much less taxes, got extra beneficiaries like childs-money/extras for schools/better mortgages when buying a house or such,
but hey,
that's the way to live in a society of people,
it is the average what regulates that living,
not the top and not the bottom of production.
i am sure not happy with the way many things run on the planet,
as world president i would delete any existance of any kind of stock market or such as the first act,
but a planet where the single living guy cries out loud because he pays something/tax which benefits the kiddies of the neighbour would be ruled by a pure anarchy, the stronger survive, but who would assist that single in such a world against the big families?
Mike